The council is making an application for a grant through the Victorian Government Enabling Tourism Fund for the Cycle Pyrenees Masterplan.

"The aim of the project is to identify recreational cycling routes in the Pyrenees as an added attraction for visitors to the Pyrenees Shire to increase economic activity and tourism yield," a council officer's report says.

Councillors voted to support the application to the tourism fund at a Pyrenees Shire Council meeting on Tuesday.

Council is applying for a $48,000 grant to complete a $60,000 masterplan. Council would contribute $12,000 if the application is successful.

"The scope of the project includes stakeholder engagement, completion of designs for the proposed routes, feasibility study, business case and activation plan," the report says.

The masterplan would map out cycle routes to a 'shovel ready' stage.

Increasing the number of visitor experiences in the Pyrenees was a recommendation of the 2017- 2020 Grampians Pyrenees Wine Tourism and Culinary Masterplan to grow visitor numbers and length of stay.

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The 2018 Grampians RDV Region Cycling and Trails Infrastructure and Business Masterplan identified a wine cycle route between Avoca and Moonambel as a priority project.

Council established a cycle link between the two towns in 2021. The next phase is to develop connections to wineries, tourism operators, scenic and historical points of interest.

"The Grampians RDA Region Cycle Plan also identified possibilities for Beaufort which can encourage tourism activity once a highway bypass of the town is established," the council report says.

An economic development report reveals population in Pyrenees Shire is growing at an average annual rate of 11 per cent, from 6700 people in 2009 to an estimated 7,500 in 2020.

Latest data reveals an unemployment rate of 5.3 per cent in the shire on September 2021, higher than pre-pandemic, but lower than height of the pandemic levels.

Cycling has become a popular tourism attraction for many towns in Victoria, particularly extensive networks of mountain biking tracks which created opportunities for towns like Forrest.

Creswick is on its journey to using mountain biking as a tourism attraction with work on a 100km network of mountain bike trails in the final stages of the planning and permit processes.

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